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Suspense Radio episodes

  • Criminal Mischief Episode 7: Famous and Odd DNA Cases

    SHOW NOTES:

    FAMOUS AND ODD DNA CASES

    Colin Pitchfork: The Beginning

     http://aboutforensics.co.uk/colin-pitchfork/

    Timothy Wilson Spencer, The Southside Strangler” First US DNA Conviction

    (David Vasquez—first to be exonerated by DNA)

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Wilson_Spencer

    http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/352011

    Brown’s Chicken Murders:
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown%27s_Chicken_massacre
    https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2018/01/08/browns-chicken-massacre-25-years-anniversary/

    Lonnie Franklin, The Grim Sleeper: Familial DNA

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grim_Sleeper

    30 min
  • Criminal Mischief Episode 6: Writing Modern Crime Fiction

    SHOW NOTES:

    Do modern forensic science and police investigative techniques make creating compelling crime fiction more difficult? Are there simply too many balls to keep in the air? Too much to consider? Or is now little different from then?

    The Past, the present, and the future

    Forensic Science timeline—-a fairly knew discipline

    Basic Science, then Medicine, finally forensic science

    Personal ID

    Visual

    Bertillon

    West Case

    Facial recognition

    Behavioral Profiling

    Prints, ABO type, DNA, DNA Phenotype

    Fingerprints—-then and now

    30 min
  • Criminal Mischief Episode 5: Making Characters Compliant

    SHOW NOTES:

    Coercion and ThreatLeverage

    Trauma:

    Trauma is time limited

    Unconscious vs Pain/Fear of death

    Drugs:

    Drugs have variable timelines
    Drugs don’t have timers

    Alcohol and Mickey Finn

    Narcotics and sedatives

    Date Rape Drugs

    Rohypnol

    GHB—Gamma Hydroxybutyrate

    E, Ecstasy,
    MDMA—3.4-Methylenedioxy Methamphetamine

    Ketamine

    LINKS:

    Date Rape Drugs: http://www.dplylemd.com/articles/date-rape-drugs.html 

    ROHYPNOL: https://www.drugs.com/illicit/rohypnol.html 

    29 min
  • Criminal Mischief Episode 4: POV in Crime Fiction
    SHOW NOTES:
    Who is telling the story?
    Is he/she also the protagonist or an observer?
    Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird
    Nick in The Great Gatsby Is he/she reliable?
    How many POV characters is too few/too many?
    Which characters know too little to drive the story/or know too much and might spoil the story?
    TYPES:
    FIRST PERSON POV: The “I” Character
    Advantages: Close tie to reader Narrator is the “Star”
    Good for mysteries-reader learns as the I character does
    Disadvantages: I character must be present Can lead to
    awkward plotting
    Can’t supply suspenseful information to reader Not good for
    thrillers
    SECOND PERSON POV: The “You” character—very tricky to use
    THIRD PERSON POV: The “He/She” Character
    SINGLE: Similar to First person except he/she is used Similar Advantages/Disadvantages as First Person
    MULTIPLE: Jumping from head to head
    Allows reader to get inside several characters
    Allows reader to have “Superior Knowledge”--Suspense Great for thrillers
    CLOSE: Camera in character’s head
    DISTANT: Camera external and watching the action
    These distances aren’t either/or but rather a continuum. The “camera” can shift along a line from far behind or above the character to inside the character’s head.
    OMNISCIENT POV: The AUTHOR as GOD
    Jump from head to head at will
    Can be confusing
    Requires more writing skill than seems apparent
    MIX & MATCH: Can combine POVs if you are good and careful
    EXPOSITION AND POV:
    FIRST: I’m a cop. Rather a homicide investigator. Have been for many decades. Not easy decades. Not at all. I’ve lost partners to the misdeeds of others. I’ve lost my family to long hours away and the neglect that engenders. I’ve even lost my soul to alcohol and planted evidence. I’ve grown to hate the job I once loved.
    SECOND: You’re a detective. Have been for decades. You know others think that the life of a detective is fascinating, and easy. That investigators are mostly out of the line off fire and come to the crime later when the who, how, and why must be discovered. That this time lag distances the investigator from the emotional impact of the crime. You know they’re wrong.
    THIRD: Mac was a homicide investigator. Had been for many decades. Early in his career he loved the job, the deciphering of the who, what, and why. But lately things had changed. He no longer jumped from bed in the morning, eager to attack the case, but rather rolled out slowly, hung over, depressed, no fire in his belly. God, he hated being trapped in this existence.
    OMNISCIENT: Homicide investigators are problem solvers. Puzzlers, who work to fit each evidence item into a bigger and cleared picture. Most have skills in this arena but none are immune to the effect such investigations lay on their souls. The dead and damaged, the inhumanity one person inflicts on another, the innocents who are caught in the wake of heinous crimes, each takes a toll on every detective’s mental faculties and stability. Makes cynicism a way of life. Such was the case with Mac Wilson. Less so for Amanda Sims, his partner, a rookie who was just beginning her tenure in the pressure cooker. She still believed in her fellow man. That wouldn’t last long.
    NOTE: In choosing your overall POV and POV character look for where the real story drama lies. This is true for not only the entire manuscript but also, if multiple POVs are used, for each scene.
    ELMORE LEONARD: What is the purpose of this scene and from whose POV should it be told?
    How Do You Choose the Right POV Character(s)?
    Who has the most at stake/faces the greatest conflicts? Who will the reader most empathize with/worry about? Who drives the story?
    Who is effected most by the story? Who is the most interesting?
    Who is present/actively involved at the climax?
    How many POV characters do you need?
    If multiple, what characters enhance the plot, offer help/hindrance...
    33 min
  • Criminal Mischief Episode 3: Time of Death
    The ME’s 3 most important determinations: Cause, Manner, and Time of Death
    Part II: Time of Death Notes
    DETERMINATION OF THE TIME OF DEATH
    Determining TOD is critical
    Both an art and a science
    The sooner after death the more accurate the estimate
    Changes death variable and unpredictable.
    Physiologic TOD, Estimated TOD, Legal TOD
    Always a best guess
    None of the methods are very accurate
    Body temperature
    Rigor mortis
    Livor mortis (lividity)
    Degree of putrefaction
    Stomach contents
    Insect activity
    Scene markers
    BODY TEMPERATURE
    Normal body temperature is 98.6F
    Body loses or gains heat until it equilibrates with that of the surrounding medium.
    The formula is: Hours since death = 98.6 - corpse core temperature / 1.5
    Cold/wind/water increase heat loss
    Obesity, heavy clothing, warm still air, exposure to direct sunlight, and an enclosed environment slow heat loss.
    RIGOR MORTIS
    Spasm due to chemical reactions within the muscle cells after death.
    Loss of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to adenosine diphosphate (ADP) causes the muscles to contract and stiffen.
    Later loss of rigidity from the putrefaction process.
    Rigor begins throughout the body at the same time
    Appears first in smaller muscles- face, neck, and hands
    Relaxes in same pattern
    General rule for rigor mortis is 12-12-12
    Changes due to: activity, body temp, ambient temp,
    Cadaveric spasm
    LIVOR MORTIS (Lividity)
    Purplish—exceptions for CO (carboxyhemoglobin), Cyanide (cyanohemoglobin), Freezing
    Dependent areas—lying, sitting, hanging
    Pale support areas
    Gravity, then leaking into tissues
    Shifting vs Fixed—Onset 1/2 to 2 hours/fixed by 8 hours
    Mismatch of pattern and body position
    THE RATE OF BODY DECAY
    Time Since Death
    Putrefaction—ambient temp/humidity
    Internal bacteria—sepsis hastens
    Water X2/BurialX4
    Ultimately skeletonize
    Floaters
    Mummification
    Adipocere-from chemical process called saponification-reaction between certain bacteria and the body’s adipose (fatty) tissues.
    Stomach Contents
    Stomach empties in 2-3 hours—protein, fatty meals
    Intestine transient @ 24 hours
    INSECT ACTIVITY
    Forensic entomologist
    Insects help in two basic ways: Predictable developmental stages (blowfly); succession of insect species
    Changed by body location, weather, season, night
    SCENE MARKERS
    Includes information at the scene or from witnesses or family and friends.
    Missed appointments, uncollected mail or newspapers, and dated sales receipts
    Victim’s clothing—dressed for work, or morning jog
    34 min
  • Criminal Mischief Episode 2: Cause and Manner of Death
    Bestselling Author and forensic expert D.P. Lyle hosts the show.
    The ME’s 3 most important determinations: Cause, Manner, and Time of Death
    Part I: Cause and Manner of Death Notes
    CAUSE/MECHANISM OF DEATH:
    Cause of death is why the individual died
    Heart attack, GSW, traumatic brain injury, diseases
    Mechanism-physiological derangement that causes death
    One cause—several mechanisms
    Example: MI-arrhythmia, cardiogenic shock, rupture
    Example: GSW—heart or brain damage, exsanguination. wound infection
    One mechanism—several causes
    Example: Exsanguination—GSW, ulcer, meds, disease
    Just as a cause of death can lead to many different mechanisms of death, any cause of death can have several different manners of death. A gunshot wound to the head can’t be a natural death, but it could be deemed homicidal, suicidal, or accidental.
    MANNERS OF DEATH: For what purpose and by whose hand
    NATURAL: Natural deaths are due to the workings of Mother Nature in that death results from a natural disease process. Heart attacks, cancers, pneumonia, and strokes are common natural causes of death. This is by far the largest category of death that the ME sees.
    ACCIDENTAL: Accidental deaths result from an unplanned and unforeseeable sequence of events. Falls, automobile accidents, and in-home electrocutions are examples of accidental deaths.
    SUICIDAL: Suicides are deaths that come by the person’s own hand. Intentional self-inflicted gunshots, drug overdoses, or self-hangings are suicidal deaths.
    HOMICIDAL: Homicides are deaths that occur by the hand of another. Note that a homicide is not necessarily a murder. Homicide is a determination of the ME; murder is a legal charge that is determined by the courts. Though each would be ruled a homicide by the ME, the legal jeopardy is much different for a court verdict of negligent homicide as opposed to first- or second-degree murder.
    UNDETERMINED OR UNCLASSIFIED: This extra category is used in situations where the coroner can’t accurately determine the appropriate category.
    Examples:
    Car/pedestrian
    Heroin/Drug OD
    GSW
    Psychological Autopsy
    Manner determines whether there is an investigation
    Manner not fixed—can change
    Proximate cause—cascade of events
    28 min
  • Criminal Mischief Episode 1: Murder Motives
    Types of Crimes: theft, burglary, robbery, embezzlement, assault, rape, ID theft/ransom, extortion, forgery, arson, kidnapping, DUI, drug dealing, trafficking, pimping/prostitution
    Motives for Murder:
    Financial – – insurance, inheritance, business takeovers, avoidance of alimony
    Property disputes
    Revenge
    Political
    Cults & Religions
    Murder for hire
    Empathy and sympathy
    Crimes of passion
    Domestic
    Protect self-image or secrets
    To protect others
    Blackmail
    To cover another crime
    Social and hate crimes
    Sex, jealousy, obsession
    Mental illness – – delusions and hallucinations
    Drugs and alcohol
    34 min
  • Interview with Kate White
    Kate White is the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of eighteen novels of suspense: ten standalone psychological thrillers, including the upcoming The Last Time She Saw Him (May ’24), and also eight Bailey Weggins mysteries.
    For fourteen years Kate served as the editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan, which under her became the most successful magazine in single copy sales in the U.S. Though she loved her magazine career, she decided to leave ten years ago to concentrate full-time on another passion: writing suspense fiction.
    Kate’s first mystery, If Looks Could Kill, was a Kelly Ripa Book Club pick, a #1 bestseller on Amazon, and an instant New York Times bestseller. She has been nominated for an International Thriller Writers Award in the fiction category, and her books have been published in over 30 countries worldwide.
    Like many female mystery authors, Kate fell in love with the genre after reading her first Nancy Drew book, in her case The Secret of Redgate Farm.
    Kate is a frequent speaker at libraries, book conferences, and organizations, and has appeared on many television shows, including The Today Show, CBS This Morning, Morning Joe, and Good Morning America.
    She is also the editor of the Mystery Writers of America Cookbook, as well as the author of several bestselling career books, including I Shouldn’t Be Telling You This and the ground-breaking Why Good Girls Don’t Get Ahead but Gutsy Girls Do.
    Kate is an avid traveler and enjoys spending each winter with her husband at their home in Uruguay. She holds an honorary doctorate of letters from her alma mater, Union College, where she gave the 2022 commencement speech.
    17 min
  • Interview with Maxie Dara
    Maxie Dara is from a tiny, Hallmark movie-style town in Ontario, Canada where she works as a writer and actress, because rejection-heavy careers are her passion. She is also a two- time award- winning playwright. Maxie knew she wanted to be a writer at the age of seven, when she first fell in love with the written word. She also wanted to be a mermaid but has mostly focused on the writing side of things.
    22 min
  • Interview with Lee Child and Andrew Child
    We are so pleased to bring you the replay of this live event. Lee and Andrew Child were gracious enough to let us host this live event. They talked about their latest book IN TOO DEEP and everything Jack Reacher. You gotta check this out!
    IN TOO DEEP:
    Reacher had no idea where he was. No idea how he had gotten there. But someone must have brought him. And shackled him. And whoever had done those things was going to rue the day. That was for damn sure.
    Jack Reacher wakes up alone, in the dark, handcuffed to a makeshift bed. His right arm has suffered some major damage. His few possessions are gone. He has no memory of getting there.
    The last thing Reacher can recall is the car he hitched a ride in getting run off the road. The driver was killed.
    His captors assume Reacher was the driver’s accomplice and patch up his wounds as they plan to make him talk.
    A plan that will backfire spectacularly . . .
    1 hr

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Suspense Radio, brings you the best of the best in suspense / thriller / mystery and horror. Interviews and reviews in the genres.